That night, the exorcists drank themselves to sleep. The mountain wind blew through the forest, rustling the leaves. In the bedroom, Mo Rigen and Lu Xu were entangled on the floor, while Chen Feng was sleeping soundly on the bed. Mo Rigen was groping around. Just as he was about to enter, Chen Feng suddenly said something in his sleep. Lu Xu was startled.
"Let's send him back," Mo Rigen said. "If he wakes up in the middle of the night and sees a fight, it won't be good for the child."
Lu Xu had no choice but to signal Mo Rigen to send him back. Mo Rigen carried Chen Feng to Li Jinglong's door. "Shh." Li Jinglong came out bare-chested.
"Are you done?" Mo Rigen said.
Li Jinglong nodded. Mo Rigen quickly handed the hot potato to Li Jinglong and said, "It's my turn. Don't come."
Li Jinglong smiled and hugged Chen Feng. Mo Rigen kicked the door open and rushed back to be intimate with Lu Xu. Hongjun asked sleepily. Li Jinglong put Chen Feng down. Chen Feng was in a daze. He hugged Hongjun and did not let go. Li Jinglong was full of jealousy. He pushed Chen Feng away a little, lifted the quilt, and lay down to sleep together.
In the middle of the night, Li Jinglong suddenly woke up for no reason.
He opened his eyes. He did not know why, but he remembered the night when Hongjun left him and went to the high cliff. It was as if there was something in the distance calling out to him. Immediately after, he saw the Wisdom Sword emitting bursts of light.
Li Jinglong: "!!!"
He held the Wisdom Sword in his hand and faced outside the room. When he faced a certain direction, the Wisdom Sword's light intensified. Li Jinglong immediately pushed the door open and walked out. Following the bursts of light, he quickly passed through the long corridor and went to the side hall. It was desolate everywhere. Tables, long beds, and curtains were scattered all over the floor.
A golden light shone from the side hall of Pure Flowers Palace. Li Jinglong hurriedly pushed open the door and entered, only to be greeted by the statue of the Immovable Wisdom King!
The last time she came to Pure Flowers Palace, she hadn't seen this statue. It was likely that after Wu Qiyu had gone through a lot of trouble, he had somehow managed to get this bronze statue to suppress evil. At this moment, the Immovable Wisdom King actually appeared and looked down at Li Jinglong. Li Jinglong was still bare-chested and did not know what to do. After a short moment of consideration, he knelt down in front of the Immovable Wisdom King and placed the sword of wisdom across his knees.
"Lord … Bright King." This was not the first time that Li Jinglong had spoken with the Immovable Wisdom King, but every time they met in a hurry, he did not know how to address him, so he could only be vague.
"Mahamayuri is no longer the host of the demonic seed," the Immovable Wisdom King said. "From now on, you do not know how to break free from the heavy responsibility of purifying the evil energy of the common people. This is your choice, but it will still have a profound impact on the future generations. It cannot be underestimated."
Li Jinglong muttered to himself. The Immovable Wisdom King continued, "None of the successors of divine power have ever thought like you. This is something that even I was unable to do in the past."
Li Jinglong did not know whether the Bright King was praising him or scolding him, so he could only reply, "Junior is afraid."
"You used the power of the mind lamp to temporarily destroy the demonic seed," the Immovable Wisdom King continued. The Immovable Wisdom King continued, "But after 365 days and nights, the demonic seed will be able to repair itself. Li Jinglong, you only have one year left."
Li Jinglong, "…"
Li Jinglong thought to himself, No way, at least let me rest for a few days before telling me this news.
"I believe you already know the whereabouts of the remaining artifacts," the Immovable Wisdom King said. "After all, you personally asked me to distribute the six artifacts to the entire Exorcism Division …"
"Yes. Wait … "When he returned to the past through the dream, Li Jinglong was indeed the originator of this proposal. However, he did not know the exact location of the six artifacts!
"Find all six artifacts." The Immovable Wisdom King stretched out his hand and said, "Inherit the Sword of Wisdom. One year later, success or failure will depend on this battle. Although you have won the first victory now, there is still a possibility that you will fall into the abyss in the future. Remember this."
The Immovable Wisdom King's huge palm spread out in front of Li Jinglong. Li Jinglong was shocked. In the palm, there was a fiery red bird lying quietly!
"This is …"
"The Phoenix Sky Sovereign will not enter the cycle of reincarnation. I will temporarily hand it over to you. Its fate with Mahamayuri is not over."
Li Jinglong took the three-finger-sized Phoenix. The Immovable Wisdom King suddenly scattered into golden powder, turning into a river of stars and disappeared.
The Phoenix lay quietly in Li Jinglong's palm. It did not open its eyes and buried its head under its wings.
The next day.
The big ship set off and entered the Yangtze River through the Jinghe waterway. It went south along the road, preparing to pass through Jingzhou and then enter Shu through the waterway. This way, it would not have to pass through the "difficult" Chuanshu ancient road. At the foot of Mount Li, Li Jinglong found the boatmen who had not yet escaped far. The boatmen were still observing the situation. Originally they wanted to return to Chang 'an to take a look, but Li Jinglong used some money to have them sent into Shu.
Chong Ming also came back.
"Ah ah ah —" Everyone was shocked when they saw the Phoenix.
"What a beautiful bird." Chen Feng said. "Eh? Why are you hiding so far away? "
On the ship, a summer breeze blew. Chen Feng took a chopstick and wanted to poke the Phoenix. He was hurriedly stopped by the others. They must not rub the fur on the tiger's head.
"It is my father." Hongjun put down the book in his hand and came to the table. Li Jinglong made a simple nest with his robe and placed the Phoenix in it. Since returning last night, the flame-red bird with gorgeous feathers did not eat or drink, as if it was meditating.
"Is your father a bird?" Chen Feng was very curious. He asked, "Aren't you an exorcist?"
Hongjun really did not know how to answer this question. However, Chen Feng had seen it for the past few days and already had a vague answer in his heart. Hongjun could only smile and say, "Yes … let me see it."
The Phoenix of the past had already disappeared, and in its place was this quiet fledgling.
The others did not dare to tease the Phoenix. Firstly, it was once Hongjun's adoptive father. Secondly, although it had experienced nirvana, no one knew how powerful it was. It would not be a joke if it spouted fire on the ship. Thirdly, if it was accidentally provoked, it would flap its wings and fly away. If Hongjun could not find it again, he would hate it for the rest of his life.
"It's none of my business." Li Jinglong hurriedly said, "The Immovable Wisdom King only asked me to pass it on. I'll leave it to you."
Everyone left one after another, leaving the Carp Demon, Chen Feng, and Hongjun to look at the bird.
Hongjun stretched out his finger and gently poked the Phoenix. He whispered, "Hey, Father."
It doesn't remember you anymore. Qing Xiong's words were still in his ears. Hongjun still had a little hope, but the Phoenix still ignored him. Hongjun stared at it in a daze. For a moment, all kinds of feelings welled up in his heart.
"Let's give it a name." Chen Feng said, "Does it have a name?"
Hongjun originally wanted to say that it had a name, but on second thought, he gave up on this idea.
"No." Hongjun said, "Let's call it 'Gui Lai'."
"Feng Xi, Feng Xi returns to its hometown and roams the four seas in search of its Phoenix." Chen Feng said.
Hongjun was shocked, but on second thought, although Chen Feng's family had declined, he was still the descendant of the great writer Chen Zi 'ang, so it was not surprising.
"Yes." Hongjun laughed and said, "That's what it means. It still came back."
Hongjun put Gui Lai on the edge of the couch and looked at it with Chen Feng for a while. The Phoenix was still sleeping and did not pay attention to anyone. Hongjun decided not to disturb it, leaving Chen Feng to stare at the bird curiously.
Li Jinglong sat on the railing of the ship and looked at the shore. The ship had just left Mount Li, and the shore was scorched black. Last night, the Acalanatha's warning made him worry again. There was only one year left to find the other three magic tools. If he was lucky … Li Jinglong did not believe in his luck. It was as if once something changed for the worst, it would inevitably end up like that.
Hongjun looked everywhere for Li Jinglong. The sound of Qiu Yongsi playing the zither could be heard from the cabin. Li Jinglong glanced at Hongjun and smiled.
"There's something I want to discuss with you." Li Jinglong motioned for Hongjun to come over. As long as Chen Feng was not there, he could not help but hug him and let him lean on his body. He thought for a moment and asked with great interest, "I want to serve Chen Feng as our son. Can you do that?"
Hongjun said, "Of course!"
Besides Li Jinglong and Hongjun, there was no one else in the world who could be said to have such a relationship with the Chen family. It was as if the moment they brought the Heart's Lantern, they were destined to raise the Chen family's descendants. Hong Jun gradually felt that the countless complicated things that happened seemed to have been predestined by the unseen world.
"Why do you seem to have something on your mind?" Hongjun observed Li Jinglong and said, "Yes, I said yes."
Hongjun thought that Li Jinglong was afraid that he was unwilling to adopt Chen Feng, so he confirmed it repeatedly. Li Jinglong smiled helplessly and said, "If one does not consider the future, there will be immediate worries. It's natural."
Hongjun looked at Li Jinglong suspiciously. Li Jinglong took his hand and called for a meeting of the exorcists.
Originally, Li Jinglong did not want to restart the search for the six artifacts so soon. However, as long as the demonic seed was not eliminated, it was like a sharp sword hanging over his head. He did not know when it would fall. It was much easier to discuss it now. At least they did not have to avoid Hongjun anymore. How to hunt Xie Yu had nothing to do with Hongjun's life.
Li Jinglong redrew a simple map of the Tang Dynasty and added six symbols: lake, gate, eye, slope, moon, river … The lake was the Sword of Wisdom, the gate was the Demon Binding Rope under the Dragon-subduing Pagoda, and the moon was Magus's Lonely Mountain. The three artifacts that had been found were eliminated. According to everyone's speculation not long ago, they basically matched up.
"The Demon Binding Rope should have belonged to Yongsi." Li Jinglong said, "It was taken by Hongjun. In other words, Yongsi has to find the one that belongs to Hongjun."
Mo Rigen said, "The Moon Eclipse Bow is at my birthplace."
"That's right," Li Jinglong replied, "Then in the waterway of Poyang Lake, where the Sword of Wisdom was stored, who was it?"
No one was born in Poyang Lake. When Li Jinglong asked this question, they all looked at each other.
"Let's not talk about the Sword of Wisdom first." Li Jinglong said again, "Tegra, where were you born?"
Atay: "…"
Atay replied, "To be honest, I was born in Luoyang."
Everyone was shocked when they heard this. Li Jinglong suddenly remembered that when the last successor of the Sassanid dynasty came to the Central Plains to borrow troops from Li Longji, it was when Atay was born.
"Later, my father and mother went to fight against the Ramadan army. Seeing that there was no chance of survival, they entrusted me to my teacher." Atay explained, "So … I think, Elder, our initial deduction was right. In the depths of the earth vein under Longmen Mountain, there was indeed a magic weapon hidden there."
This was troublesome … the magic weapon was no longer there. Who could have taken it away?
"Hongjun! Li Jinglong! "Chen Feng's clear voice sounded.
"Stop fooling around." Hongjun said to Chen Feng, "We're in a meeting."
Li Jinglong said to Chen Feng, "Call me father."
Chen Feng was stunned for a moment before everyone burst into laughter. Lu Xu was expressionless as he said with a sour tone, "Congratulations, you have a son now."
Chen Feng was a little nervous. He understood and looked at Hongjun, saying, "Father …"
"Call me father!" Li Jinglong didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
"Then what should I call him?" Chen Feng interrupted, and everyone immediately stopped talking. However, this kid was really smart.
"Call him mother." Li Jinglong said.
Hongjun decisively corrected him, "Call him little father!"
Everyone immediately burst into laughter. "Little father" was a curse word in Chang 'an. Li Jinglong immediately said, "You can't call him that. Call him whatever you want. Hurry up and get out …"
"Hongjun! Hongjun! " The carp demon seemed to have discovered something extraordinary again. It made a fuss and rushed in, shouting and yelling.
"Don't be noisy!" Lu Xu crossed his arms and was thinking.
Mo Rigen said, "It's none of our business. We already have the Eclipse Moon Bow, and it won't be with Lu Xu. Let's go back to our room first …"
"There's still a long way to go!" Li Jinglong didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "What's the rush? Just the water route alone will take half a month. There's plenty of time. "
Li Jinglong didn't want to know the whereabouts of the Six Treasures. He couldn't be at ease. At this moment, the Carp Demon rushed in and shouted, "Hongjun! Hongjun! "
Chen Feng also shouted, "Hongjun! Hongjun! "
The hall became a mess. Hongjun was getting a headache from all the shouting and said, "Stop arguing!"
Qiu Yongsi suddenly said, "Eh? Brother Long? Do you still remember where you were born? "
The Carp Demon said, "I'm just a fish follicle. I don't have parents. Are you stupid? How would I know where I was born?"
Lu Xu screamed, "No way! You think it's really it?! "
The Carp Demon said, "Hongjun! Help me take a look! I … "
The Carp Demon turned around and raised its tail. "I … Why do I feel like I've grown longer?"
Everyone: "…"
Hongjun then realized that the Carp Demon seemed to be a little different.
The Carp Demon asked nervously, "Can you guys tell?"
Lu Xu said, "I can't tell. Zhao Zilong, is it really appropriate for you to show your thing to everyone?"
The Carp Demon immediately shouted and hid behind Hongjun. The fish's butt was under its tail. The Carp Demon was so nervous that it forgot to cover its embarrassment. Everyone immediately said, "I didn't see it."
"I didn't see anything …"
Hongjun said, "Lie on my back and take a look."
Hongjun often carried the Carp Demon on his back. It was exactly two feet long, but he had never measured it. The Carp Demon said, "Two feet and two inches! What do you think now? "
Hongjun didn't need to measure it to realize that the Carp Demon's body seemed to have been elongated. It was originally in the shape of a carp, but after its tail was elongated, it looked more or less like …
"Like what?" The Carp Demon asked nervously. "What does everyone think I look like?"
"Like a grass carp," everyone said in unison.
The Carp Demon: "…"
"Don't tell me it can transform into a dragon?" Hongjun was very surprised. The Carp Demon lay on the table again. Such a fish was not polite at all. It stretched out its hands and feet, beckoning the exorcists to look at its naked body … and said, "Everyone, help me take a look!"
Everyone was speechless for a moment.
Li Jinglong couldn't take it anymore and said, "Zhao Zilong, get out!"
"I'll ask Kun Shen when I see him again." Hongjun hurriedly promised. "You should have accumulated enough merit, right?"
"But I didn't do anything." The Carp Demon said, "I saved a hundred people. Did I save them?"
Qiu Yongsi said, "Perhaps. We have thousands or even tens of thousands of people fighting this battle. Why don't you go back to the basin and lie down first? If you want to transform into a dragon, you need to conceal your spirit and qi, harmonize your heart with the heavens, especially get rid of distracting thoughts, feel the changes in your whole body, and wait for the dragon horns to appear. Later, if there is any movement, you can call us to confer the title of Righteous Bestowal to you.
The carp monster hurriedly agreed. Qiu Yongsi often dealt with dragons, so the carp monster naturally believed his words without a doubt. Patter patter patter, it ran away again.
After the Carp Demon was successfully sent away, everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief. They didn't need to be confused by the noise anymore. Li Jinglong said, "Then let's continue …"
Before he could finish his sentence, Chen Feng said, "Hongjun! It's my turn! "
Li Jinglong: "…"
Li Jinglong was a father for the first time in his life. He originally wanted to let Chen Feng be quiet, but on second thought, as a father, he needed to study seriously and learn from each other, so he could only suppress it for the time being. Hongjun asked, "What's wrong with you?"
"Look." Chen Feng took out Phoenix from his chest. When everyone saw his actions, they were instantly frightened out of their wits. This was because Chen Feng's "take out" was like grabbing a little chick. He directly grabbed Phoenix by the roots of its wings and pulled it out.
"Don't!" Hongjun was so scared that he almost peed his pants. If Chong Ming was carried around like this in the past, he would probably burn down Chang 'an City with a mouthful of flames.
"Gui Lai opened its eyes! It also paid attention to me! "Chen Feng said.
Unexpectedly, when Chen Feng placed the Young Phoenix on the table, its sharp eyes swept across everyone, and then turned to Chen Feng indifferently.
"How did you make it open its eyes?" Hongjun said in surprise.
Chen Feng said and gestured. It turned out that he had picked a pot of leaves from the bow of the ship and planned to feed it to Gui Lai. However, the divine bird was not interested in the leaves. Instead, it pecked away the dew on the leaves, then opened its eyes and glanced at Chen Feng. After that, no matter how Chen Feng tormented it, Gui Lai was no longer angry.
Hongjun said, "I understand. It's a little thirsty, so we have to find food for it."
It was shameful to say that Hongjun did not think of how to serve the Phoenix. Qiu Yongsi said, "Feng 'er, it just hatched not long ago. You have to go to the bed and hold it. This way, it will feel like you're in the nest. After a while, it will recognize your scent and treat you as its friend."
Chen Feng nodded. Qiu Yongsi said, "Hold it for two hours. Don't move it."
Chen Feng said, "Then I'll go."
Thus, Chen Feng also left.
Everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness, only Qiu Yongsi was good at tricking children and carps. Otherwise, if they quarreled, they would not be able to do anything today.